Good Morning, Illini Nation: Illinois' history at MSG

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Welcome to “Good Morning, Illini Nation,” your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He’ll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball at large:

Illinois officially announced its Feb. 22 showdown with Duke at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. It will be the 29th game at some version of MSG in program history — postseason games included — and third in three seasons. Illinois played 14 games in the third iteration of MSG (1928-68) and 14 in the most recent version that opened in 1968 and is considered the "Mecca of Basketball."

The Illini are 3-1 in the Brad Underwood era in one of the most iconic arenas in the sport, which includes a three-game winning streak. Here's a look at how the first 28 games at a pair of MSGs played out:

Dec. 18, 1937 — Illinois 60, St. John's 45

Dec. 27, 1938 — Illinois 60, Manhattan 41

Dec. 26, 1940 — Illinois 56, Manhattan 40

March 21, 1949 — Illinois 71, Yale 67*

March 22, 1949 — Kentucky 76, Illinois 47*

March 20, 1951 — Illinois 79, Columbia 71*

March 22, 1951 — Illinois 84, North Carolina State 70*

March 24, 1951 — Kentucky 76, Illinois 74*

Dec. 26, 1962 — Illinois 98, Pennsylvania 66

Dec. 28, 1962 — Illinois 91, NYU 84

Dec. 29, 1962 — Illinois 92, West Virginia 74

Dec. 27, 1965 — Illinois 96, Georgetown 94

Dec. 28, 1965 — Providence 81, Illinois 79

Dec. 30, 1965 — Army 78, Illinois 69

Dec. 27, 1973 — St. John's 76, Illinois 60

Dec. 29, 1973 — Duquesne 85, Illinois 83

March 17, 1980 — Minnesota 65, Illinois 63#

March 19, 1980 — Illinois 84, UNLV 64

Nov. 10, 1998 — Wake Forest 75, Illinois 73

Nov. 11, 1998 — Illinois 65, Georgetown 50

Dec. 9, 2003 — Providence 70, Illinois 51

Nov. 18, 2010 — Texas 90, Illinois 84 (OT)

Nov. 19, 2010 — Illinois 80, Maryland 76

Dec. 9, 2014 — Villanova 73, Illinois 59

Feb. 28, 2018 — Iowa 96, Illinois 87^

Jan. 26, 2019 — Illinois 78, Maryland 67

Dec. 6, 2022 — Illinois 85, Texas 78 (OT)

Dec. 5, 2023 — Illinois 98, Florida Atlantic 89

*NCAA tournament game

#NIT game

^Big Ten tournament game